Monkshood Memories
by rhaine
Summary: With Izark mysteriously missing and governments still chasing her, Noriko has picked the worst time to fall ill. Her dreams link her to Izark's memories, but is Noriko strong enough to withstand the dangers of his mind until Izark can save her?
1. Unseeing

As she looked into the dark, roiling waters beneath her, she couldn't help but shiver. The cold patter of raindrops fell about her, the soft grumble of the thunder distant to her ears. Lightning flashed above her head, briefly illuminating the barren, lone deck on which she stood. Her fingers clenched the wooden bar, cold as ice, while her thoughts echoed one phrase:

_Where is he?_

Images flooded through her brain as she swayed against the storm, pausing only long enough to come into focus before being whisked away by another memory.

Holding _him_ when she had first fallen…

...seeing _his_ transformation and knowing she loved _him_ despite it…

...traveling with _him_ across numerous strange lands…

...battling enemies both powerful and cutthroat…

...falling to _him_ on purpose this time, and bringing out the white wings so foreign to _him_...

How could _he_ leave her? The images slowed to rest on the last image she had of _him_… _his_ warm smile directed at her as _he_ walked out the door.

A cold wind sprayed water on her cheeks, the salt water mixing with her tears as her sobs shook her. "He said he'd never leave me!" she cried, her knees hitting the hard wooden boards and her head resting upon her hands. Her fingers tightened on the railing as she remembered the bond only they had shared; the mental link that had allowed them to speak to each other's minds, even when separated by long distances. That bond wasn't working, though. She had tried to reach _him_, calling out to _him_ time after time while her energy waned from little nourishment and long sleepless nights. Auntie hadn't been able to help her, nor Irk or anyone…

A small hand touched her shoulder, and she started with surprise. "Geena!" she said in shock, the little seer's body soaked like her own from the howling wind and pouring rain.

"Have you seen any sign of him?" Geena asked softly.

"No…" she said reluctantly, turning away from the eyes suited more to seeing what others could not than the physical world around them.

"Come inside, big sister," Geena said gently, tugging on her now-limp hand.

The girl's tired eyes looked once more to the ocean as she stood, all thoughts void from her mind. Letting Geena lead her meant she didn't have to make decisions, and as she mused at how the blind little girl was able to move around the ship with ease, her thoughts shied away from the possible ends _he_ might have come to. The warm light of her cabin and the dry clothes laid out for her had a stupefying effect, and as she climbed into bed and her head hit the pillow, only one word was on her lips…

_Izark._


	2. Bound

He groaned as the feeling started to return to his body. The pain he could handle, but the uncertainty of being able to get out was another matter. Opening his eyes didn't help much with that, though. The darkness surrounding him was so complete that there seemed to be no difference between being unconscious and being awake. He listened carefully, hoping to hear something more than the pounding of his own heart.

Nothing. Not even the sound of insects.

This time he experimented with moving his hands slowly. His fingers could move… but something was holding his wrists down. A faint clank greeted his ears as he tried to lift his hands as far as he could. He frowned; his hands were only a few inches off the ground. He took a deep breath, straining to try and break the chains. He grunted as the metal refused to give way. _I have no strength right now…what is wrong with me? What happened? _he thought tiredly, moving his head from side to side in an effort to possibly gain some idea of his whereabouts. Nothing! No light, no sounds… NOTHING was around him.

The darkness pressed in like ink, slowing his thoughts and responses. This oppression was worse than all the monsters and power-hungry warlords he had ever faced. Those enemies had been visible and capable of being defeated. The darkness only left him to his own thoughts. His thoughts were the most powerful of his enemies… with them he could tear himself down faster than any power could beat down his body.

He moaned as the pain increased. His flesh tightened as his hands elongated and grew, with sharp claws piercing the tips of his fingers. He tried to hold himself together, gripping his stomach as far as his chains would let him. His shoulders hunched and his knees drew up into his chest in an effort to stop his body from splitting. The lack of _her _meant that he would change. At his current state of disability, changing would take over his whole mind and he would never return. The pain echoed in his head as images of _her _started flashing through his mind like reflections on broken glass. Shouts started filling his head as the pain escalated beyond a normal mortal's breaking point.

_Get away from me!..._

_…what **are **you???..._

_…you're a **monster…**_

_...Why did I ever agree to having you?..._

_…Don't you get it? You'll never escape being the **Sky Demon!...**_

_...I'll never leave you…_

His head snapped up. Where is _she_? What could have happened? What's going on? The thoughts stopped abruptly as an idea came to him.

"Could she… hear me?" he asked himself softly, a small window of light appearing in his darkness-strewn mind. "She's _got _to hear me…" he said desperately, his voice breaking from the sheer panic of not being with _her._

_**Noriko!**_

* * *

**A/N: So... I keep forgetting the disclaimer. My apologies! Noriko and Izark are not mine... but the plotline is!**


	3. Dreamwalking

Noriko groaned and groggily tried to open her eyes, but the spinning ceiling did nothing for her aching body and overtaxed mind. _Why is the ship spinning? _she wondered slowly as she tried to take a few deep breaths, but she only succeeded in causing a coughing fit that lasted a good few minutes. A cool hand rested on her forehead, and a soothing voice spoke to her. _What is she saying? _Noriko thought to herself wearily. _Why can't I hear her? I know I could understand her… if I could just hear her… _The cool hand lifted from her brow and was replaced with a damp cloth. Noriko shivered slightly as chilled water trickled down her neck, and was only vaguely aware of the blankets being pulled closer. The darkness at the edges of her vision surged forward and fell back, constantly threatening to overpower her senses. How tempting it was to fall into the darkness and just let go! No worries would follow her there. A small red flag waved madly at the back of Noriko's conscious. She knew there was something she was supposed to care about, but the whisper of sleep echoed too strongly across her mind for her to resist.

"The poor girl…" Auntie said softly as she contemplated Noriko's unhappy face. "Staying outside in that downpour all night made her sicker than we thought. If she's not careful, she won't live to see Izark return."

"You think he'll return?" a wraith-like child asked her, watching Noriko with dark and serious eyes. Auntie shifted her gaze to the child whose recent torments had surpassed even the Grey Bird Tribe leader's imaginings.

"If he doesn't return, Miette, he and Noriko are worse than dead," Auntie said gravely, her piercing gaze catching Miette's eyes. "You know of fates that are beyond the darkness of what death brings to us, so it must not be taken lightly that Izark has not yet returned to her." The worries Auntie spoke of were even heavier than she had let on, and the silence that followed her statement was punctuated only by Noriko's labored breathing. Auntie turned away from the girl, somewhat unsettled by the vehemence with which she had responded. Her worries about Noriko were grave indeed, she reflected, if she was reduced snapping at an unknowledgeable child.

Noriko shifted, her fall into sleep as uneasy as the ship's passage through the storm the prior night. Auntie watched her for a minute before settling herself in for a long evening of nurse-duty.

* * *

The dark clouds that enveloped Noriko's mind soon lifted, showing not the ship's interior, but fields upon fields full of waving wildflowers and emerald-green grass. The soft breeze pulled at Noriko's hair, urging her to run through the nodding flowers and scented grass, the sun's rays warming her back through the thin cloth. Noriko laughed as a cloud of butterflies erupted before her, their gossamer wings blinking in the sunlight like jewels by a fire's flames. Falling back into the flowers, Noriko gave a gentle sigh and watched the clouds as they passed by. One of them actually looked like her math textbook… but she let it continue, not wanting to focus on her least favorite aspect of her old world. Cloud after cloud drifted past, their bright fluffiness only set off by the deep blue of the sky behind them. Noriko stretched, drowsiness starting to set in with the serene and restful nature of the field.

A piercing scream shocked Noriko wide awake, and as she bolted upright in the field, the scream continued on. Noriko stood up hurriedly, dusting off her dress before anxiously running toward the direction the scream had come in. Perhaps it was Auntie, or Geena. Her steps faltered for a second as she thought of the possibility of it being Tazasheena, but that woman had left them to their own devices after losing all credibility with her lord. As Noriko crested a hill, she slowed her run to a walk, the scene before her as strange as this world had first seemed when she had fallen into it. Standing in the middle of one of the flowered fields was a little dark haired boy, with eyes that could pierce a soul, and a heart-breaking smile. In his hands were the stems to at least two or three dozen wildflowers, all missing the petals, which had found their way into his hair and onto his clothes. His forlorn look seemed to have no cause, until Noriko realized there was a woman sitting a few feet away from him, her hand and arm covering her face as though she were scared of being hurt. Even though they were far away, the woman's high-pitched screams were traveling to Noriko easily.

"_Get away from me! How could you even come out here to look for me? You are not my child, and you never will be! You are the spawn of monsters, and everyone will hate you once they know your true identity!"_

At this, the little child seemed to struggle to say something, holding up the empty stems as though they were a peace offering.

"_You wanted to bring me flowers? NOTHING could reconcile you to me! You are worthless and mean nothing to me! Do you hear me? NOTHING!"_ With this last cry, the woman scrambled to her feet and ran, disappearing from Noriko's sight. The little boy's tears flowed freely, breaking the paralysis that had spread over Noriko's limbs. She ran to the little boy and fell on her knees, holding him against her as his sobs shook his body and his tears wet her hair. She stroked his back gently, rocking back and forth as the little child poured his heart out in tear after tear. His ragged breathing slowed as the sun was setting, and Noriko loosened her hold enough to look him in the face. His piercing eyes locked onto Noriko's own, and a flash of recognition coursed through her.

"_Izark_…" she whispered. Noriko's own tears wet her cheeks as she pulled him back into a fierce hug. His soft whimpers could barely be heard anymore, and as the last rays of the sun spent themselves, he barely heard her whisper…

"_I'll never leave you…"_


End file.
